Aggressive Whiteoak Wildcats advance to district finals; shut out Waterford in semifinals

CHILLICOTHE — Once the aggressiveness of the Whiteoak Wildcats took control of the base paths, the 2019 Division IV SE District Semifinal game went in favor of the No. 2 seeded Wildcats from Mowrystown as they took the lead in the third inning and never looked back, advancing to the district finals with a 9-0 win, Monday night at VA Memorial Stadium.

Whiteoak (25-4) not only dominated with their aggressiveness on the bases, but part of that came from their hitting with the team collecting three triples in the win. Whiteoak finished the game with eight hits.

The victory by Whiteoak saw them score their first run of the game in the bottom of the third, then they added another run in the fourth, followed by a fifth inning where they began put distance between them and the No. 6 seeded Waterford Wildcats, scoring four runs off three hits, a hit by pitch and a walk in the inning as they led by six runs.

Also, the pitching from starting pitcher Evan Brill was on point as he earned the complete game win, striking out seven batters in the winning effort.

“This is how you win baseball games at this level, and that is with good pitching, and Evan was, no question, that. He’s a seasoned vet … been there and done that,” WHS head coach Chris Veidt said. “We had aggressive base running and applied pressure, which is something we talk about constantly and our guys did that tonight.

“We also need to throw and catch the baseball each game, and that is something we’ve done all year. All of that it is a recipe for success. We talk about applying pressure, and when I looked at the scoreboard a couple times we were even on hits, but we are up seven, eight, nine runs. So, the base running, even though a couple times we took some chances and gambled and lost, overall our base running did make a big difference.” 

The first run of the game for the Whiteoak Wildcats came in the bottom of the third inning where Billy Oliver reached the bases after being hit by a pitch in the one-out at-bat. He moved to second on a groundout to third base and scored off a hard-hit triple to centerfield by Zach Harless, who had two strikes again him. Harless was eventually left stranded at third base, with the final out being recorded off a pop up to first base.

Whiteoak really began to get aggressive on the bases in the bottom of the fourth inning with Ty Large (two hit by pitches, one walk, two steals, two runs) leading off with a walk, followed by a single by Mason Lehr and Trey Bogart being hit by a pitch to load the bases. Next, two outs were recorded off a pop up to the shortstop and a force out at home. Bogart ended the game at 1-for-2 with two steals, one run and two RBI.

The inning continued for Whiteoak with Billy Oliver drawing a five-pitch bases-loaded walk, scoring Lehr from third base, putting WHS ahead by a 2-0 lead.

The Wildcats of Whiteoak put the game out of reach as they controlled the bottom of the fifth inning in their favor, with Lehr taking first base with a one-out blooper hit to shallow centerfield, followed by Ty Large being hit by a pitch with an 0-2 count. The inning continued with a one-out triple off the bat of Brill, smashing the baseball to left-centerfield, scoring both runners for a 4-0 advantage. Brill finished 3-for-4 with two runs and two steals.

“Their starting pitcher was throwing over (to first base), and when he was doing that he was throwing with vim and vigor, so to me it was almost like another pitch, and that wears a pitcher down, it really does,” Veidt said. “The experience of being here last year is huge, and the experience is gigantic. We are led by our seniors, and they are a talented but a very loose bunch. As much control as we have over them during the course of a year, right now this is the time where we pull back the reins and have some fun and really enjoy them and let them enjoy their accomplishments, and that’s where they are at.”

Next, in the same fifth inning, the momentum continued for Whiteoak with Trey Bogart being hit by a pitch and the third run of the inning scoring when Bogart stole second base. As he stole second, Brill raced home for the fifth Whiteoak run. Whiteoak wasn’t finished yet as Bogart — who was a part of a double steal — scored from third base off a single off the shortstop by Oliver, pushing the Whiteoak lead to 6-0, forcing Waterford to make their second pitching change of the game.

Whiteoak’s defense kept doing what they do best as they had consecutive fielder’s choices at second base for two outs in the top of the sixth, but two base runners reached the bases for Waterford off one of the fielder’s choice plays and a dropped third strike. The inning came to a close with a swinging strike three thrown by Brill.

The aggressiveness on the bases continued to cause issues for Waterford, as Hamilton reached first base as the lead-off batter. The speed of Hamilton caused the Waterford team to have an errant throw on a pickoff attempt at first base, resulting in Hamilton gaining two bases and standing at third base. Hamilton scored on a triple hit to left-centerfield, making it a seven-run lead with no outs.

Still in the bottom of the sixth, with Harless at third and Ty Large — who was hit by a pitch — at second base with one out, both runners scored off a double to left field hit by Bogart, increasing the Whiteoak lead to 9-0 to complete a three-run inning. Harless finished 2-for-4with two triples, two RBI and one run. 

The shutout stayed intact with a perfect throw by Zach Harless from right field to home plate, with the one-hop throw landing in the mitt of Oliver to apply the tag at home for the second out of the seventh inning. The game came to a close on a groundout to second base.

“Evan had one more hitter left and he was running out of gas, understandably so because he was around 110 pitches, and the throw by Zach Harless from right field made a whole world of difference with our pitching,” Veidt said. “It made a difference because we have to make a pitching change if we don’t make that throw. Evan pitched very well, got the shutout and did an excellent job.”

As for the first two innings of the game, Waterford left one runner stranded in the first inning following a one-out infield base hit by Jude Huffman with one out in the inning. In the top of the second inning, the Waterford Wildcats again left a base runner stranded as the inning opened with a lead-off single to right field, followed by a steal of second base. The Whiteoak pitching and defense responded with a strikeout, fly ball to centerfield and a ground out to second base.

Whiteoak in their half of the second inning saw them have two hits in the inning with Brill having a single to centerfield — on a 1-2 count — followed by a single to right field by Bogart. Bogart was eventually out at second on a fielder’s choice, allowing Ryan Roberts to be safe at first base, but neither runner scored, as the inning ended with the third out coming with Whiteoak caught stealing at second base.

The win by Whiteoak moves them to the district final game on Wednesday, May 22 against No. 4 seeded Huntington with a 5 p.m. start time. Huntington defeated top-seeded Eastern Meigs, 6-5 on Monday. Earlier this season, Whiteoak defeated Huntington by a 7-5 score.

“Most years, the goal each year is to get to the district final game and win that district final game and then take your chances one pitch, one game at a time past that point,” Veidt said. “We are in a good situation, and we are looking forward to it. We need to continue to be consistent and keep playing one-pitch baseball and go from there. It is a new day on Wednesday, it is a fresh start, with two familiar foes, but I like my guys, I really do.”